In recent years, highly advanced illumination systems are being developed in order to enable consumers to obtain a desired ambiance for a particular room or space.
An example of such an illumination system is an arrangement of several light sources in a structure, such as a room, a lobby or a vehicle. The light sources, which may comprise light emitting diodes, emit visible light that carries codes identifying a light source or group of light sources. The light source codes are transmitted by modulating the visible light emitted from the light source. In such an illumination system, an optical receiver for receiving the codes is e.g. implemented in a remote control device or embedded in another device such as a switch or a sensor device. Arranging a camera in a camera position of the structure and registering images of spots of the light allows through the identification of the individual codes which light source contributes to an illumination pattern. The spots can e.g. be illuminated areas on a floor, a wall, or a ceiling. Besides deriving the individual codes from the registered images, a signal processing apparatus may also determine one or more properties of the associated light source, such as the light source position, the light intensity, a color point etc.).
US 2007/0008258 discloses a communication system comprising lighting equipment that has a transmitter comprising multiple light-emitting elements that each emit light of different wavelengths and terminal equipment that has a light receiver comprising multiple light-receiving elements that receive optical signals for each of the different wavelengths. The communication system has a lighting function and is capable of high speed signal transmission. The terminal equipment contains wavelength filters capable of transmitting different wavelengths, such the each light receiving element receives light of a different wavelength.
The communication system of US 2007/0008258 requires the optical receiver to comprise wavelength filters for the light receiving elements in order to detect the light of different wavelengths from the light emitting elements.
There is a need in the art for an optical receiver and an illumination system of reduced complexity.